Motorist charged with DUI homicide
Mother of 4 killed in crash
NORRISTOWN >> A Norristown woman was speeding and driving drunk in an SUV after a night out celebrating her birthday and caused a two-vehicle crash on the Dannehower Bridge that killed a borough woman operating a motorcycle, authorities alleged.
Courtney Rachel Clinton, 27, of the 100 block of West Marshall Street, was arraigned on Friday before District Court Judge Katharine E. McGill on charges of homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence of alcohol, homicide by vehicle, DUI, reckless driving, careless driving and speeding in connection with an Aug. 4 early morning crash that claimed the life of motorcycle driver Lakiesha Richet, 41, of Norristown.
Clinton remains free on $50,000 unsecured bail while awaiting her Sept. 6 preliminary hearing before District Court Judge Marc A. Alfarano.
The investigation began about 4:46 a.m. when West Norriton police responded to a report of a crash involving a 2015 Chevrolet Equinox and a 2005 Kawasaki motorcycle on the Dannehower Bridge, which is Route 202, over the Schuylkill River.
Emergency responders arrived to find Richet “trapped underneath” the front of the Equinox, according to the criminal complaint filed by West Norriton Police Corporal John Coogan.
Richet was deceased at the scene, police said.
While speaking with Clinton, the operator of the Equinox, police “detected a strong odor of the elements of alcohol present and other signs of impairment present,” according to the criminal complaint. Clinton, police alleged, exhibited signs of impairment during field sobriety tests and she submitted to a blood test.
An autopsy determined
Richet’s cause of death was “mechanical asphyxia with contributing core injury as a result of the crash,” according to the arrest affidavit.
The investigation that involved crash reconstruction experts from the Montgomery County Detective Bureau determined Richet’s motorcycle was traveling north in the northbound curb lane of Route 202, just north of the 5th Street ramp, and Clinton’s Equinox was also traveling northbound behind and approaching Richet’s motorcycle, court papers alleged.
“The front of the Clinton vehicle struck the rear tire area of the Richet vehicle,” Coogan alleged, adding Richet was ejected from her motorcycle for a distance of about 74 feet and landed in front of Clinton’s vehicle.
The motorcycle, after separation from the Clinton vehicle, fell onto its side and came to rest in the northbound passing lane of Route 202, police said. After striking the rear of the Richet vehicle, the Clinton vehicle continued to proceed northbound.
“While proceeding in this manner, the Clinton vehicle passed over Lakiesha Richet, trapping her under the engine area of the vehicle,” Coogan alleged, adding the Equinox then dragged Richet under the vehicle for a distance of 204 feet before coming to a stop.
During an interview by detectives, Clinton “indicated that she had been out for her birthday with several friends and that she had several shots of Patron Tequila,” according to the criminal complaint. Clinton, who turned 27 on Aug. 3, allegedly also stated she had obtained a bottle of champagne which she sipped while in the vehicle.
Clinton claimed she was attempting to turn off her GPS system when she felt her vehicle hit something and she said she believed she was traveling about 40 mph at the time, according to the criminal complaint.
Detectives subsequently retrieved crash data from Clinton’s vehicle that indicated the Equinox was traveling at 74 mph just seconds before the impact and at 62 mph at the time of the alleged impact, according to the arrest affidavit.
The posted speed limit at the location is 45 mph.
Detectives determined there were no mechanical problems with Clinton’s vehicle or Richet’s motorcycle that could have contributed to the crash.
A blood test determined Clinton’s blood-alcohol content was 0.138 percent, which is more than the legal limit of 0.08 percent. Authorities alleged Clinton’s “alertness, judgment, perception, coordination, response time and sense of care and caution would be affected.”
“After completing the crash investigation, the crash investigators determined that the causation of this crash was directly related to the combination of the level of impairment of Clinton as well as the speed at which Clinton was operating her vehicle,” Coogan alleged.
The victim, a mother of four, was the niece of former Norristown Police Department Captain and Montgomery County Deputy Sheriff Willie Richet, who added that his family is still struggling with the tragedy and had a meeting planned with the D.A.’s office and West Norriton Township Police Friday night to field lingering questions.
County Assistant District Attorney Scott Frame is prosecuting the case.